Illinois Code § 5-40

§ 5-40.

Illinois Climate Works Preapprenticeship Program. (a) Subject to appropriation, the Department shall develop, and through Regional Administrators administer, the Illinois Climate Works Preapprenticeship Program. The goal of the Illinois Climate Works Preapprenticeship Program is to create a network of hubs throughout the State that will recruit, prescreen, and provide preapprenticeship skills training, for which participants may attend free of charge and receive a stipend, to create a qualified, diverse pipeline of workers who are prepared for careers in the construction and building trades and clean energy jobs opportunities therein. Upon completion of the Illinois Climate Works Preapprenticeship Program, the candidates will be connected to and prepared to successfully complete an apprenticeship program. (b) Each Climate Works Hub that receives funding from the Energy Transition Assistance Fund shall provide an annual report to the Illinois Works Review Panel by April 1 of each calendar year. The annual report shall include the following information: (1) a description of the Climate Works Hub's recruitment, screening, and training efforts, including a description of training related to construction and building trades opportunities in clean energy jobs; (2) the number of individuals who apply to, participate in, and complete the Climate Works Hub's program, broken down by race, gender, age, and veteran status; (3) the number of the individuals referenced in paragraph (2) of this subsection who are initially accepted and placed into apprenticeship programs in the construction and building trades; and (4) the number of individuals referenced in paragraph (2) of this subsection who remain in apprenticeship programs in the construction and building trades or have become journeymen one calendar year after their placement, as referenced in paragraph (3) of this subsection. (c) Subject to appropriation, the Department shall provide funding to 3 Climate Works Hubs throughout the State, including one to the Illinois Department of Transportation Region 1, one to the Illinois Department of Transportation Regions 2 and 3, and one to the Illinois Department of Transportation Regions 4 and 5. An eligible organization may serve as the designated Climate Works Hub for all 5 regions. Climate Works Hubs shall be awarded grants in multi-year increments not to exceed 36 months. Each grant shall come with a one year initial term, with the Department renewing each year for 2 additional years unless the grantee either declines to continue or fails to meet reasonable performance measures that consider apprenticeship programs timeframes. The Department may take into account experience and performance as a previous grantee of the Climate Works Hub as part of the selection criteria for subsequent years. (d) Each Climate Works Hub that receives funding from the Energy Transition Assistance Fund shall: (1) recruit, prescreen, and provide preapprenticeship training to equity investment eligible persons; (2) provide training information related to opportunities and certifications relevant to clean energy jobs in the construction and building trades; and (3) provide preapprentices with stipends they receive that may vary depending on the occupation the individual is training for. (d-5) Priority shall be given to Climate Works Hubs that have an agreement with North American Building Trades Unions (NABTU) to utilize the Multi-Craft Core Curriculum or successor curriculums. (e) Funding for the Program is subject to appropriation from the Energy Transition Assistance Fund. (f) The Department shall adopt any rules deemed necessary to implement this Section. (Source: P.A. 102-662, eff. 9-15-21; 102-1031, eff. 5-27-22; 102-1123, eff. 1-27-23.)